JP2019109113A - Conduit measurement device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a conduit measurement device capable of acquiring data of an inner diameter at each position of a conduit.SOLUTION: A conduit measurement device 10 is capable of traveling in a conduit. The conduit measurement device 10 includes a position acquisition unit 12 for acquiring data on a position of the conduit measurement device 10, and an upper arm 13 and a lower arm 14 for measuring an inner diameter C2 of a conduit C at that position.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention belongs to a conduit measurement device.

  There is known an apparatus for measuring a conduit (such as a bellows tube). For example, Patent Document 1 describes a technique for enabling a conduit measurement device to travel accurately in a conduit.

  The inner diameter of the conduit may not be constant. For example, if the material of the duct is soft, the duct may be deformed by the external pressure and the inner diameter may not be constant. In such a case, it is useful to grasp the shape of the conduit. For example, it is possible to determine whether or not maintenance work is necessary according to the crushed condition of the pipeline.

  For example, Patent Document 2 describes a device for measuring a cross section of a conduit using a length measurement wing as a conduit measurement device capable of measuring the shape inside the conduit. Moreover, the apparatus which image | photographs the internal peripheral surface of a pipeline using the camera is described in patent document 3. FIG.

JP-A-9-105627 JP, 2015-31087, A WO 2003/076916 pamphlet

  However, in the prior art, there is a problem that it is difficult to obtain the inner diameter at each position of the conduit.

  For example, the technique of Patent Document 1 can not measure the inner diameter. Further, in the technique of Patent Document 2, it is difficult to measure the position of the apparatus itself, so it is difficult to associate which position (position in the length direction) of the conduit has what inner diameter. Furthermore, with the technique of Patent Document 3, it is difficult to calculate the correct inner diameter from the image.

  This invention was made in order to eliminate such a problem, and it aims at providing the channel measuring device which can acquire the internal diameter in each position of a channel.

The pipe line measuring apparatus according to the present invention is a pipe line measuring apparatus capable of traveling in the pipe line,
A position acquisition unit for acquiring the position of the conduit measurement device;
And an inner diameter measuring unit for measuring an inner diameter of the conduit at the position.
According to a specific aspect, the control unit stores a value representing the position and a value representing the inner diameter in association with each other.
According to a particular aspect, the position acquisition unit comprises a gyro and an accelerometer.
According to a particular aspect,
The inner diameter measurement unit includes a first distance measurement unit and a second distance measurement unit.
The first distance measuring unit measures the distance from the first reference position to the inner surface of the conduit at the first circumferential position.
The second distance measuring unit measures the distance from the second reference position to the inner surface of the conduit at a second circumferential position opposite to the first circumferential position.

  Since the conduit measurement apparatus according to the present invention includes the position acquisition unit and the distance measurement unit, the inner diameter at each position of the conduit can be acquired.

It is a figure which shows the example of a structure outline of the conduit measurement apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of a structure outline of the conduit measurement apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described based on the attached drawings.
Embodiment 1
FIG. 1 shows an example of a schematic configuration of a conduit measurement apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The conduit measurement device 10 is a device that performs measurement regarding the conduit C, and is configured to be able to travel in the conduit C. The conduit measurement device 10 includes a vehicle body 11 moving in the conduit C, a position acquisition unit 12, an upper arm 13, a lower arm 14, and a control unit 20. The position acquisition unit 12, the upper arm 13, the lower arm 14, and the control unit 20 are attached to the vehicle body 11. A predetermined axis A can be defined for the vehicle body 11.

  The position acquisition unit 12 acquires the position of the conduit measurement device 10. The value representing the position of the conduit measurement device 10 may be obtained directly or may be obtained indirectly from other information by calculation or the like. For example, when the position acquisition unit 12 includes a gyro and an accelerometer, it is possible to acquire an attitude angle and an acceleration in a stationary system as a reference, and the position of the conduit measurement device 10 is calculated by calculation based on the attitude angle and the acceleration. It can be acquired. The reference and expression form of the position of the conduit measurement device 10 can be arbitrarily designed, for example, expressed in three dimensions, but may be expressed in two dimensions or other expressions.

  The upper arm 13 and the lower arm 14 are examples of a distance measurement unit for measuring the inner diameter of the conduit. In particular, the upper arm 13 is a first distance measuring unit, and the lower arm 14 is a second distance measuring unit. The upper arm 13 and the lower arm 14 are provided on opposite sides with respect to the axis A of the vehicle body 11. That is, the upper arm 13 is provided at a first circumferential position in the vehicle body 11, and the lower arm 14 is provided at a second circumferential position opposite to the first circumferential position in the vehicle body 11. In the present embodiment, the upper arm 13 and the lower arm 14 are elongated members having a longitudinal direction. The length of the upper arm 13 is La1 and the length of the lower arm 14 is La2.

  For convenience of explanation, in the example of FIG. 1, since the upper arm 13 and the lower arm 14 are shaped to have a non-zero thickness, these lengths do not exactly match La1 and La2, but this specification does not The book ignores this error. Those skilled in the art can appropriately design the processing of errors actually occurring (setting of tolerance, correction of errors, etc.).

  The upper arm 13 and the lower arm 14 are rotatably fixed to the vehicle body 11, and rotate in a plane including the axis A of the vehicle body 11. In the example of FIG. 1, the upper arm 13 pivots about the inner end 13a (first reference position), and the lower arm 14 pivots about the inner end 14a (second reference position). Let Lb1 be the distance between the pivot axis of the upper arm 13 or the inner end 13a and the axis A of the vehicle body 11 and Lb2 be the distance between the pivot axis of the lower arm 14 or the inner end 14a and the axis A of the vehicle body 11 . Further, the rotational angle of the upper arm 13 (ie, the angle between the longitudinal direction of the upper arm 13 and the axis A of the vehicle body 11) is θ1, and the rotational angle of the lower arm 14 (ie, the longitudinal direction of the lower arm 14 and the vehicle body 11). The angle between the axis A and the axis A) is θ2. However, in the present embodiment, 0 ° ≦ θ1 and θ2 ≦ 90 °.

  The upper arm 13 and the lower arm 14 are biased radially outward of the vehicle body 11 (that is, in a direction in which θ1 and θ2 increase). This biasing is realized by, for example, a spring not shown. As a result, the outer ends 13 b and 14 b of the upper arm 13 and the lower arm 14 contact the inner surface C 1 of the conduit C.

When both the upper arm 13 and the lower arm 14 are in contact with the inner surface C1 as shown in FIG. 1, the inner diameter C2 of the conduit C is expressed as follows:
C2 = {Lb1 + La1 ・ sin (θ1)} + {Lb2 + La2Lasin (θ2)}
... (Equation 1)

  In the example of FIG. 1, the upper arm 13 and the lower arm 14 have a non-zero thickness in the example of FIG. Although an error occurs, this error is ignored in this specification. Those skilled in the art can appropriately design the processing of errors actually occurring (setting of tolerance, correction of errors, etc.).

  In the equation 1, La1, La2, Lb1 and Lb2 can be set as constants, for example, when designing the conduit measurement device 10. Also, θ1 and θ2 can be obtained using an appropriate measuring device (eg, an encoder or the like).

  Thus, the upper arm 13 measures the distance from the inner end 13a (first reference position) to the inner surface C1 of the conduit C at the first circumferential position, and the lower arm 14 measures the first circumferential direction. At a second circumferential position opposite to the position, the distance from the inner end 14a (second reference position) to the inner surface C1 of the conduit C is measured. Thus, the inner diameter C2 of the conduit C is measured.

  The control unit 20 can be configured using a computer provided with computing means and storage means. The control unit 20 calculates the inner diameter C2 using the above equation 1. Further, the control unit 20 associates and stores the position acquired by the position acquisition unit 12 and the inner diameter C2 of the conduit C measured or calculated using the upper arm 13 and the lower arm 14 or the like.

  As described above, since the conduit measurement apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes the position acquisition unit 12 and the distance measurement unit (upper arm 13 and lower arm 14), the inner diameter at each position of the conduit C You can get C2.

  This makes it possible to quantitatively determine, for example, at which position of the conduit C (or the trajectory of the conduit measurement device 10) and how much crushing occurs. Also, since quantitative judgment can be made in this way, it becomes easy to create or apply the criteria for diagnosis of the conduit C.

  A configuration for enabling the conduit measurement device 10 to travel in the conduit C (for example, a configuration for supporting and moving the conduit measurement device 10) can be appropriately designed. For example, the upper arm 13 and the lower arm 14 may be configured as the legs described in Patent Document 1. Alternatively, the lines described in Patent Document 2 may be used. Alternatively, as described in Patent Document 3, it may be a self-propelled type provided with wheels. When electric power is required for operation or traveling of the conduit measurement device 10, a power supply cable may be provided to connect the conduit measurement device 10 to an external power supply.

  The outer end 13 b of the upper arm 13 and the outer end 14 b of the lower arm 14 may have a structure or configuration for reducing friction with the inner surface C 1. For example, a slide plate having a slide surface sliding with a low coefficient of friction while in contact with the inner surface C1 may be attached to the outer end of each arm or its periphery. Such a slide plate may be rotatably fixed, for example, with respect to the upper arm 13 around the outer end 13b.

  The specific configuration of the distance measuring unit does not have to be a configuration that pivots like the upper arm 13 and the lower arm 14. For example, a leaf spring may be used. More specifically, upper and lower flat springs are provided instead of the upper and lower arms 13 and 14 respectively, and the upper and lower flat springs are provided when the conduit measurement device 10 passes through the inside of the conduit C. It may be configured to contact the inner surface C1 and deform radially inward. If this amount of deformation or the position of the outermost end of each leaf spring is measured, the inner diameter C2 of the conduit C can be calculated as in the first embodiment.

  Although the position acquisition unit 12 acquires the position of the conduit measurement device 10 in the first embodiment, the final calculation of the position of the conduit measurement device 10 may be performed by the control unit 20. For example, the position acquisition unit 12 may transmit the attitude angle and the acceleration to the control unit 20, and the control unit 20 may calculate the position of the conduit measurement device 10 based on these.

  The conduit measurement device may further include a computer disposed apart from the vehicle body 11, and the control unit may be configured by such a computer. In that case, a cable connecting the vehicle body 11 and the computer may be provided.

  In the present specification, it is assumed that the axis A of the vehicle body 11 is always parallel to the axis of the conduit C, but even if there are moments or time zones when they are mutually inclined, the application of the present invention Is possible. In addition, the conduit measurement device 10 may be provided with a configuration for appropriately detecting and correcting such inclination or error.

Second Embodiment
In the first embodiment, the conduit measurement device 10 includes only one pair of arms. The second embodiment is modified to include a plurality of pairs of arms in the first embodiment.

  FIG. 2 shows an example of a schematic configuration of the conduit measurement device 110 according to the second embodiment. FIG. 2 is a view as seen from the direction of the axis A, unlike FIG. The conduit measurement device 110 includes four pairs of arms 15 (total eight). The arms of each pair are provided at circumferential positions opposite to each other in the vehicle body 111, and for example, the arm 15a and the arm 15b form a pair. Further, in the present embodiment, the pairs are provided at equal intervals in the circumferential direction (in the example of FIG. 2, provided at intervals of 45 degrees in the circumferential direction).

  The control device of the vehicle body 111 applies the above equation 1 to each pair, and measures the inner diameter at corresponding circumferential positions. Thus, for example, the amount of crushing at each position of the conduit C (or the trajectory of the conduit measuring device 10) can be measured together with the crushing direction. Moreover, the direction of the external pressure with respect to the conduit C can be measured by measuring the amount of collapse and the direction of collapse.

  The second embodiment can be modified in the same manner as the first embodiment.

  10, 110 pipeline measuring device, 12 position acquisition unit, 13, 15a upper arm (first distance measuring unit), 13a upper end of inner arm (first reference position), 14, 15b lower arm (second distance measuring unit ), 14a Inner end of lower arm (second reference position), 20 control unit, C channel, C2 inner diameter of the channel.

Claims (4)

A pipeline measuring device capable of traveling in the pipeline, wherein
A position acquisition unit for acquiring the position of the conduit measurement device;
And an inner diameter measuring unit for measuring an inner diameter of the pipeline at the position.   The conduit measurement apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a control unit that associates and stores a value representing the position and a value representing the inner diameter.   The conduit measurement apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the position acquisition unit includes a gyro and an accelerometer. The inner diameter measurement unit includes a first distance measurement unit and a second distance measurement unit.
The first distance measuring unit measures the distance from the first reference position to the inner surface of the conduit at the first circumferential position.
The second distance measuring unit measures the distance from the second reference position to the inner surface of the conduit at a second circumferential position opposite to the first circumferential position.
The conduit measurement device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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